Owner Service

A master lease turns vacant or underperforming commercial property into fixed income from the day it is signed.

Stewardship Commercial becomes the tenant of record on the facility, pays the owner a fixed rent on a fixed term, and brings its own tenant relationships, leasing, and management to fill the space. The lease-up risk moves to Stewardship. The income starts for the owner.

How It Works

One counterparty. One check. The building gets filled by people who already know the tenants in the corridor.

We underwrite the building first: corridor, layout, realistic sublease rents, actual tenant demand. If it fits, Stewardship signs the master lease and becomes your tenant. From that point the leasing calls, tenant improvements, sublease structuring, and day-to-day management are ours. You collect fixed rent while the rent roll gets built underneath it, which is what a lender or a buyer wants to see when you refinance or sell.

What Stewardship takes on

  • Tenant sourcing from active relationships in Lake, Porter, and LaPorte counties
  • Sublease structuring and negotiation
  • Tenant improvement coordination
  • Property management through stabilization
  • Vacancy and rollover risk during the term

What the owner keeps

  • Fixed rent from signing on a fixed term
  • A single tenant of record and a single relationship
  • Title, upside on sale, and the stabilized rent roll at exit
  • No leasing commissions or TI outlays during the master lease
  • A straight answer up front if the building does not fit
FAQ

Master lease questions

What is a master lease?

A master lease is a single lease covering an entire facility or a defined block of space. The master tenant pays the owner a fixed rent and takes responsibility for subleasing, filling, and managing the space. The owner's income is set by the master lease, not by sublease occupancy.

When does a master lease make sense for an owner?

Newly acquired property with vacancy and no leasing infrastructure; underperforming assets with stale space or rollover; out-of-market owners who want income rather than a leasing project; and lenders or servicers holding property that needs a rent roll before it can be refinanced or sold.

How is a master lease different from hiring a leasing broker?

A leasing broker markets space on the owner's behalf while the owner still carries vacancy, funds tenant improvements, and pays commissions as deals close. Under a master lease, Stewardship becomes the tenant of record, pays fixed rent from signing, and takes on the leasing, tenant improvements, and management itself.

What kinds of buildings fit a master lease in Northwest Indiana?

Multi-tenant retail, flex, small-bay industrial, and office in corridors where Stewardship has active tenant relationships and can underwrite realistic sublease rents. Not every building fits; we underwrite first and say so.